They told us to max out our 401(k)s. We maxed out our lives instead.
If you freelanced, caregiving, created, dissented, or simply refused to hand your best years to a corporation — this guide was written for you.
GenX made unconventional choices that worked beautifully during our working years. We traded the pension for freedom, the corner office for meaning, the corporate ladder for something that actually mattered. Now we’re staring down the second half of our lives, and the retirement the financial industry promised was never designed for people like us.
Retirement Beyond the 401(k) is a comprehensive life planning guide that goes far beyond money. It covers everything the financial planning industry leaves out:
- Community and mutual aid — building the relationships and networks that become your real safety net
- Housing — creative options from co-housing to cooperative living to intentional community
- Food security — growing, preserving, foraging, and sharing food as both survival strategy and joy
- Health and healthcare — navigating the system without a net, including medical tourism and community health resources
- Money and benefits — honest accounting of what you have, what you need, and what you may be leaving on the table
- Purpose and meaningful work — what gets you out of bed when a paycheck no longer has to
- Joy, rest, and play — because that’s actually the whole point
The guide also includes a section on forming your own retirement support circle — a small group of trusted friends and family who work together to build real, collective solutions to the challenges ahead.
Every section includes reflection prompts and writing space, making this a workbook as much as a guide. No shame. No false promises. No advice designed for people who played a game most of us never signed up for.
